KUCHING, Sept 6 — The Malaysian palm oil industry had shown resilience in the first half of 2023, with benchmark crude palm oil price standing robust at RM3,900 per metric tonne average throughout the year under review.
“This is further supported by the recent Malaysian Palm Oil Board report, which highlighted a 15.55 per cent rise in exports and 11.21 per cent surge in production in July, surpassing market expectations. Nevertheless, he cautioned market participants to remain vigilant in light of the increasingly unpredictable weather conditions, potential changes to global trade and environmental, social and governance policies, as well as the ongoing geopolitical risks, all of which had the potential to significantly impact the palm oil trade.
According to Abdul Wahid, the well-established Crude Palm Oil Futures contract offered by Bursa Malaysia Derivatives plays a significant role in providing liquidity and transparency via an exchange-traded marketplace. “The trading volume of the global benchmark FCPO, on the other hand, reached an exceptional 16.2 million contracts during the same period, surpassing previous record highs,” he said.